Floor covering



Oct. 24, 1933. A. ELMENDORF FLOOR COVERING Filed April 9, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I lljiffy/701 J 'ft "(/fiorneg Oct 24, 1933,

A. 'ELMENDORF FLOOR covmnine Filed April- 9, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 u '14 I ll ll llllll Patented Oct. 24, 1933 UNITED STATES PATIENT OFFICE 12 Claims.

The present invention has for its object to produce a simple and novel wooden flooring that may be laid as easily and as quickly as linoleum, or similar coverings.

A further object of the present invention is to produce a simple and novel flooring composed -of a layer of wood containing many individual pieces, preferably small blocks or tiles that can not only be laid easily and quickly, but will have each of its wooden pieces solidly supported notwithstanding that the underlying foundation or bed be wavy or uneven; or in which the wooden layer may be said to follow the configuration of an uneven bed or foundation and rest solidly thereon.

In carrying out my invention, I secure the wooden layer consisting of blocks, tiles or boards to a flexible backing, conveniently by means of a suitable adhesive. Panels of this material, when laid upon a concrete bed or foundation or upon an old floor which is wavy or uneven, with the backing layer underneath, adapt themselves to the configuration of the underlying surface. Spaces are left between adjacent pieces of wood for the reception of a binding material which, when it sets, constitutes a grill in which the individual pieces of wood rest. It is desirable that the binder be brought into contact with the supporting surface for the composite flooring and adhere thereto; thus bonding the composite flooring to the underlying supporting bed or foundation and, in the case of binding materials that become hard when set, insuring that the wood pieces are fixed in a strong, rigid grill or framework resting solidly on the underlying bed or rough floor. The simplest way of enabling the binding material to come in contact with the underlying bed or rough floor is to punch comparatively large holes in the flexible backing in registration with openings in the layer of wood; the openings in the wood ex tending up for any desired distance from the bottom face and being located at any desired points, although they are preferably spaces in the joints between the blocks, tiles, or boards. The binding material, when in a plastic condition, can run or settle down through these holes in the backing after the rudimentary flooring has been laid, efiectively bonding the composite flooring to the supporting bed or floor.

Various binding materials may be employed. In the case of factory floors, for example, where the wooden flooring is preferably composed of thick blocks of wood, the binding material may be asphalt poured while hot and therefore in a liquid condition. Where the wooden portion of the flooring is composed of comparatively thin wooden tiles or boards, the binding material must be a cement which becomes very hard upon setting, as, for example, magnesite cement. Furthermore, the sides of the pieces of wood may or may not be shaped to produce a keying action between same by the binding material. Also, the parts may be so constructed that the blocks, tiles, or boards come directly into contact with each other at the top and for some distance below the top, so that no binding material will be visible from above, or they may be spaced apart throughout their entire thicknesses. Where there are open spaces extending from top 7 to bottom between the pieces of wood, the plastic binding material is simply poured on the rudimentary flooring after it has been laid and is then pushed along the same and spread by a squeegee or the like so as to fill these spaces. 7 If the open spaces are narrow, the'upper face of ,the layer of wood may be scraped quite clean by the mere operation of pushing a deposited mass of,binding material ahead. However, if the spaces or cracks are wide, a squeegee or scraper will dig into the same more or less, causing the binding material to be drawn up out of the joints and smeared on the tops of the blocks or tiles. In the case of wooden blocks showing end grain in their upper faces, where the binding material is melted asphalt, and where the spaces between the blocks are about one-eighth of an inch wide, I am able to place the surface in such condition by the mere process of scraping the asphalt across the surface that subsequently only a little dusting with Portland cement or other fine material upon the floor is required to.complete it. In the case of lacquered wooden tiles or boards having the grain running parallel with the upper faces, it is 95 possible to secure a surface that is sufilciently clean to permit it to be given a final wax finish after the binding material has been deposited on the rudimentary floor and has been spread and scraped in the manner explained above; this, however, being true only where the spaces between the tiles or. boards are narrow, say about one-eighth of an inch wide. With such narrow spacings the magnesite cement can be neatly leveled off flush with the'surface of the wood and the lacquered wood surface be left so clean that any slight film of magnesite cement remaining thereon will be taken up by a waxed cloth or pad .in the act of waxing the floor.

It may, therefore, be said that my invention has for one of its objects a composite rudimentary flooring composed of a flexible backing and an overlying layer of wood composed of blocks, tiles or boards of such a character that the surface of the flooring .will be left substantially clean and practically ready for use by the mere operation of distributing a mass of plastic binding material deposited upon the rudimentary fioor.

A further object of the present invention is to produce a rudimentary composite flooring composed of many separate pieces of wood secured to a flexible backing, the backing having holes therein, and the parts being so fashioned that plastic cementing material may be caused to flow through those holes in laying the flooring, and thus bond the flooring to the underlying rough floor or foundation.

A further object of the present invention is to produce a simple and novel composite flooring containing a layer of wood composed of individual pieces in which the individual pieces of wood are set and firmly held in a rigid grill of cement bonded to the underlying rough floor.

The various features of novelty whereby my invention is characterized will hereinafter be pointed out with particularity in the claims; but, for a full understanding of my invention and of its objects and advantages, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a top plan view and Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of a fragment of a rudimentary flooring embodying the present invention in one of its forms; Fig. 3 is a section, on a larger scale, on line 33 of Fig. 1, showing the flooring laid and completed; Figs. 4 and 5 are views similar to Fig. 3, showing other forms; Fig. 6 is a horizontal section through one ofthe individual blocks or tiles being, for example, a section on line 6-6 of Fig. 3 through the middle block; Fig. 7 is a top plan view of a rudimentary flooring containing fiat blocks of wood with the grain running parallel with their upper or wearing faces, and which may, therefore, be termed tiles; Fig. 8 is a section on line 88 of Fig. 7, on a larger scale, showing the flooring laid and completed; Figs. 9 and 10 are views similar to Fig. 8, showing other forms; Fig. 11 is a view similar to Fig. 10, showing the openings or cavities in the wooden layer as being in the bottoms of the individual pieces and not at the joints; Fig. 12 is a bottom plan view, on a smaller scale, showing one of the tiles of Fig. 11 and a fragment of the backing sheet; Fig. 13 is a view similar to Figs. 8-11, showing a modification; and Fig. 14 is a top plan view of a fragment of the rudimentary flooring before it has been laid to produce the floor of Fig. 13.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, 1 represents a. flexible sheet which is conveniently composed of felt or other flexible fibrous material having sufficient mechanical strength not to become easily ruptured in handling the rudimentary flooring. Overlying the sheet 1, which constitutes the backing of my rudimentary flooring, is a thick layer of wood composed of numerous individual blocks 2 distributed across the length and breadth of the backing sheet and secured thereto, preferably by means of glue. The blocks are placed face up, so that the backing sheet will rest upon the rough cement or other floor on which the flooring is to be laid. While the blocks are attached to the backing sheet, they are not otherwise secured to each other and may, therefore, adjust themselves individually to secure the firmest possible footing on the underlying rough floor, even when the latter is uneven.

It is my purpose that, after the rudimentary flooring has been laid down in sufficient quantities to cover the area to be floored, the flooring will be completed and transformed into a solid unitary structure by binding material placed between the blocks and bonded to the underlying supporting surface for the flooring. I have, therefore, formed in the flexible backing numerous comparatively large holes 3 each adapted to register with a space between adiacent blocks; which space is adapted to be filled with plastic binding material which in turn flows down through the corresponding hole or holes to the underlying rough floor. The blocks are cemented or otherwise secured to the backing, so as to stand away from each other a short distance that ordinarily should not exceed oneeighth of an inch at the top of the floor. The holes in the backing, however, should ordinarily have a diameter considerably greater than oneeighth of an inch.

In applying this particular form of flooring, it is laid on the wooden, concrete or other rough floor A to be covered, as indicated in Fig. 3; the flexible backing adjusting itself to conform to the configuration of the rough floor. Then, assuming that the blocks are of a type suitable for a'factory floor, hot asphalt is poured upon the rudimentary flooring and is spread over the same so as to cause all of the spaces between the blocks to be filled. When the asphalt is sufficiently hot it will retain its fluidity long enough to flow down into and through the holes in the backing sheets. Furthermore, if there are little holes or depressions underlying the backing sheets, the asphalt will flow into and fill the same. The tops of the blocks are scraped clean in the act of pushing the overlying melted asphalt across the flooring if means, such as rubber edged scrapers or squeegees, are employed for this purpose. The final finish may then be given by dusting over the surface thereof dry Portland cement or other suitable powdered material. By making the blocks comparatively small in transverse dimensions, theupper surface of the completed flooring will be sufficiently smooth to require no trimming or sanding, even though the underlying floor be quite uneven. This follows from the fact that a block having a comparatively small area at the base will set itself solidly upon an underlying surface even though the latter be uneven or wavy; whereas large blocks not only fail to find a solid support, but assume tilted positions when laid upon an uneven under floor; causing some blocks to project a considerable distance above adjacent blocks at their meeting points, and necessitating the doing of considerable Work to smooth the top of the flooring after it has been laid.

It may be desirable to key adjacent blocks together. In that event, each block may have in as many of its vertical faces as desired transverse grooves, such as indicated at 4. If all of the vertical faces are grooved in this way, thereby forming a continuous groove around each block, the asphalt, which is indicated at 5, will form continuous keys 6 between each block and the contiguous blocks.

In Fig. 4 I have shown the blocks '1 as having straight vertical faces excepting at the bottom where the corners are cut away along the four sides, as indicated at 8, thus causing the passages between the blocks to flare at their lower ends and thus make it easier for the asphalt to spread out and fill the holes in the backings. v

In Fig. 5 is shown the simplest form of block 9 whereby the passages between the blocks in the rudimentary flooring will be uniform in width from top to bottom, providing no keying and permitting no spreading of the asphalt or other binding material, after it has entered the passages between the blocks, until the holes in the backing sheets are reached.

The blocks shown in Figs. 1-6 are of the kind best adapted for factory floors. In Figs. [-10 are shown lighter, or thinner floorings adapted for residences, offices and many other places where a flooring composed of heavy blocks would not be suitable. In the forms of my invention illustrated in Figs. 7-10 the backing sheets may be identical with those in the other forms, being of any suitable materials provided with properly placed holes 3. Theblocks 10, shown in Figs. '7 and 8, are comparatively thin, fiat pieces in the form of tiles, the grain of the wood being horizontal instead of vertical. These blocks or tiles are secured by an adhesive or otherwise to the backing. The edge faces of these particular blocks, or at least some of them, slope inwardly in step-like formation so that, while the spaces between the blocks are narrow at the upper surface of the flooring, being ordinarily about one-eighth of an inch wide, they increase in width, then become narrower, and then again increase in width until the backing sheet is reached; the width at the bottom of the passages being preferably about equal to the diameter of the holes in the backing sheets. This widening of the spaces, of course, occurs only where the edge faces of adjacent blocks or tiles are properly shaped. Viewed in one way, the special configuration of the edge faces of the blocks shown in Fig. 8 may be said to be provided by shaping the edge faces so as to have the form of a letter Z in vertical cross section, the Zs, as indicated at 11, being inclined or sloping inwardly.

After the rudimentary flooring has been placed to cover the rough underlying floor A, a plastic binding material that will become hard when it sets, preferably magnesite cement, is deposited upon the rudimentary flooring and is spread over the same by a scraping action until all of the passages between the blocks or tiles have been filled. If the blocks or tiles have lacquered upper or exposed faces, they are wiped quite clean by the rubber edged scraper or squeegee employed for pushing the cement over the surface of the floor and at the same time smoothing it off so that in the passages it lies flush with the upper faces of the blocks or tiles. In fact, the floor is left so clean that, after the cement has set, the waxing of the fioor, in .the manner that floors are usually waxed, will give the final finish without necessitating any preliminary cleaning of the surface. When the cement 12 flows down through the passages between the blocks or tiles, it spreads out to form in each of the specially shaped passages an intermediate solid key 13 and, below the key, again spreads out and fills the holes in the backing. The cement, in setting, becomes firmly bonded with 'the underlying floor, whereby each block or tile is .derlying floor.

held in a rigid frame encircling the same and resting solidly around the entire perimeter of the block or tile upon the underlying floor to which it is firmly anchored. Consequently, after the cement has set, each block or tile is supported directly from the underlying fioor by a bridge-like structure of cement fixed to the un- It should be noted that a flooring of this type can safely be laid upon a concrete fioor which is still in a green state, since the moisture from the concrete may escape through the magnesite.

In Fig. 9 I have shown a slightly different form of block or tile 14. In this form, those edge faces that are left vertical are first inclined inwardly, as indicated at 15, into the vicinity of the plane of the bottom of the block or tile, and are then sloped outwardly again, as indicated at 16, until the bottom is reached. When the blocks or tiles are attached to the backing, the spaces between the blocks or tiles are narrow at the top and, on one or more sides of each block, flare downwardly and then converge again so as to have a width equal to about the diameters of the holes in the backing sheets. Consequently, when the cement has set, it produces strong, heavy keys 17 between adjacent blocks ortiles, resting on and bonded to the underlying floor by feet 18 that fill the holes in the backing sheets.

In Fig. 10 I have shown an arrangement similar to that in Fig. 9, excepting that the blocks 20 are in contact with each other at the top, so that none of the cement or other binding material will be visible. In this form of my invention, the inclined faces 21 and 22 may be like the faces 15 and 16 of the blocks in Fig. 9; the only difference between the two forms of blocks being that the transverse dimensions of the blocks in Fig. 10 are greater than those of Fig. 9, so that the upper portions of the blocks in Fig. 10 will contact with each other when the blocks are secured to the backings. With a flooring of the kind shown in Fig. 10, the binding material cannot be introduced from above, but the rudmentary flooring must first be placed face down and the cement be introduced into the cavities or recesses in the wooden layer through the openings in the backing sheets. Then, when the rudimentary flooring is turned over and laid on a supporting floor with the backing next to the latter, the cement will settle itself, through the action of gravity, upon the underlying floor.

In Figs. 11 and 12 blocks or tiles 25 are secured in contact with each other upon a flexible backing sheet 26 having holes 2'7 registering with undercut grooves 28 in the under sides of the blocks or tiles. These grooves must be filled with plastic cement 29 while the rudimentary flooring is turned upside down, as is done with the form illustrated in Fig. 10; the rudimentary flooring being then placed, right side up, upon the floor A, whereupon the cement settles by gravity into intimate contact with the floor A.

While it is possible to make floors in the manner illustrated in'Figs. 10, 11 and 12, I do not regard these floors as being as satisfactory as are the other forms, because water can enter the joints from above and cause the wood to swell.' Also, in the form shown in Figs. 11 and 12, there is no keying of one block or tile to adjacent blocks or tiles.

In Figs. 13 and 14 I have illustrated a flooring which differs very much from the other forms. Instead of placing the flexible backing on the under side, I here put it on top of the blocks or tiles. The blocks or tiles 30 are shown as being of the same type as the blocks or tiles 14 and 20, while the flexible sheet 31 is illustrated as consisting of a thin, tough sheet of paper glued to the tops of the blocks or tiles. The flexible sheet has little slots 32 cut into the same in registration with the open spaces between the blocks or tiles. This rudimentary flooring is set on the rough floor A, backing sheet up, and the cement is poured on top of the backing sheet as before. The plastic cement,

of course, flows down through the holes or slots in the backing sheet to the underlying floor, forming strong keys 33 filling the spaces between the blocks or tiles and bonded to the supporting floor below. After the cement has set, the paper backing is stripped ofl.

With this last form or my invention it will usually be necessary to touch up the cement in the joints in order that the upper surface of the cement may be smooth and lie flush with the tops oi the blocks or tiles. This is due to the fact that portions of the joints between the blocks or tiles are covered by the backing sheet and it is, therefore, impossible to smooth the cement at those points as long as the backing remains in place. In any event, however, this form of my invention provides a flexible rudimentary flooring composed of a backing and a layer of wood secured to the backing, the backing being perforated to permit plastic cement to pass through the same to the underlying rough floor or foundation.

In the drawings T have shown the layers of wood as being composed of blocks or tiles. However, it is evident that some of the advantages or" my invention may be obtained by making the tiles so long that they maybe called boards, in which case Figs. 8-111 may be regarded as rep resenting sections through completed floors embodying boards, the sections being on planes transverse to the lengths of the boards.

My improved flooring in any of its various forms may be e in sheets or panels of any desired size, in its rudimentary state; a sumcient number of such sheets or panels being laid side by side to cover the door which is to be over-= laid. In its thinner forms, at least, the flooring may be made in long strips or sheets and rolled up for transportation of storage, in the manner of carpet, linoleum or the like.

It will be seen that the work of laying my improved floorings and placing them in condition for use is very simple and, therefore, not costly.

It will also be seen that the completed fioorings are 'very solid and are very solidly supported on and securely held to the underlying rough floor.

The flexible backing in those to of my in;- vention wherein the backing rests on the main floor is preferably saturated with asphalt so as to be waterproof. The backing therefore prevents moisture irom rising ,up to the blocks or tiles from the underlying floor if the latter have a high water content as, for example, green concrete. Also, if the main floor is uneven, so that the wet magnesite cement flows underneath the backing in spots, the blocks or tiles are protected against being dampened by the water in this wet cement.

While I have illustrated and described with particularity only a singlepreierred form of my invention, together with a few of the many modified forms which it may take, I do not desire to be limited to the exact structural details thus illustrated and described; but intend to cover all forms and arrangements which come within the definitions of my invention constituting the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A rudimentary flooring comprising a flexible backing sheet, and wooden blocks or tiles overlying and secured to the backing sheet, said backing sheet having comparatively large holes through the same in registration with joints between the blocks or tiles, and there being between adjacent blocks or tiles spaces registering with the openings in the backing.

2. A rudimentary flooring comprising a flexible backing sheet, and wooden blocks or tiles distributed over the length and breadth of the backing sheet near but spaced apart from each other, said backing sheet having comparatively large holes extending through the same in registration with the spaces between the blocks or tiles.

3. A rudimentary flooring comprising a flexible backing sheet, and an overlying layer of wood, the layer of wood consisting of blocks or tiles distributed face up over the length and breadth of and secured to said sheet, said sheet having large holes through the same, and said layer of wood having openings registering with the openings in the backing sheet.

A rudimentary flooring comprising a flexible backing sheet, and an overlying layer of wood, the layer of Wood consisting of blocks or tiles distributed face up over the length and breadth of and secured to said sheet, said sheet having large holes through the same, and said layer of wood having openings extending downwardly through the same from the top thereof and registering with the openings in the backing sheet.

5. A rudimentary flooring comprising a flexible backing sheet and an overlying layer of wood, the layer of wood consisting of blocks or tiles distributed face up in spaced relation to each other over the length and breadth of and secured to the backing sheet, and the backing sheet having comparatively large openings registering with the spaces between the blocks or tiles.

6. A rudimentary flooring comprising a flexible backing sheet and an overlying layer of wood, the layer of wood consisting of blocks or tiles distributed face up in spaced relation to each other over the length and breadth of and secured to the backing sheet, and the backing,

wood, the layer of wood being composed of blocks or tiles distributed face up and in contact with each other over the length and breadth of and secured to the backing, each block or tile being cut away at at least one of its vertical faces to form in the under face of the layer of wood numerous open recesses, and the backing sheet having comparatively large openings registering with said recesses.

8. In combination, a supporting floor, a flooring overlying said floor and comprising a flex-v ible backing lying on said floor and a layer of wood overlying and secured to the backing layer,

said backing layer having openings therein and the layer of wood containing cavities registering with said openings, and a binding material extending from said cavities through the openings in the backing and into bonded relation with said floor.

9. In combination, a supporting floor, a flooring overlying said floor and comprising a flexible backing lying on said floor and a layer of wood overlying and secured to the backing, said layer of wood being composed of separate pieces arranged side by side with spaces between the same, the backing having holes therethrough in registration with said spaces, and a grill of hard cement filling the said spaces and having feet extending through the holes in the backing and bonded to said supporting floor.

10. In combination, a supporting floor, a flooring overlying said floor and comprising a flexible backing lying on said floor, and a layer of wood composed of individual blocks or tiles overlying and secured to the backing, said backing having holes therethrough, and a grill or framework of hard cement overlying the backing and embracing each block or tile to support the latter independently of the backing, and feet extending from said grill or framework down through said holes in the backing to and resting on said floor.

11. In combination, a supporting floor, a flooring overlying said floor and comprising a flexible backing lying on said floor, and a layer of wood composed of individual blocks or tiles overlying and secured to the backing, said backing having holes therethrough, and a grill or framework of hard cement overlying the backing and embracing each block or tile to support the latter independently of the backing, and feet extending from said grill or framework down through said holes in the backing to and in bonded relation with said floor.

12. In combination, a supporting floor, a fiexible sheet covering said floor, said sheet having numerous openings therethrough, a rigid grill or framework of hard cement overlying and resting on the flexible sheet and having feet extending down through said openings to the said floor, and insets of wood filling the open spaces in said framework or grill.

ARMIN ELMENDORF. 

